Joyeux Anniversaire
by lefcadio
Summary: Franz and Eugénie help Albert celebrate his fifteenth birthday.


The morning of Albert de Morcerf's fifteenth birthday dawned bright and clear; despite the early hour, already the temperature was rising and chasing off the small amount of dew that had managed to accumulate on the parched grass outside. It had been a long, scorching summer. Parisian ladies were staying indoors, loathe to venture out into the burning sun which might darken their milky skin; men sweltered, torn between their pride and the overwhelming desire to rip off their cravats and jackets. The Seine had gradually been retreating down the banks, and the dusty heat had instilled it with a brown murkiness.

The hands of his pocket watch had only reached ten o'clock, but the morning was already sweltering. Albert, however, was fast asleep. The same could not be said of his best friend, Franz d'Epinay, who was at this precise moment wide-awake, and utterly terrified.

"Eugénie!" His hands tightened convulsively, clutching the sides of his seat as the car rounded yet another corner at breakneck speed. Franz was by no means a coward, and was usually perfectly capable of staying calm and reasonable whatever the situation. This time, however, he felt it was well within his rights to be unsettled. His brown eyes were narrowed against the wind, and watered from its strength which whipped back his hair. "Don't you think... you're going a little fast?"

But Eugénie, it seemed, did not think his question deserved an answer. Instead, she just grinned and tightened her grip on the steering wheel. Franz was starting to feel that perhaps this had not been the best way to go about executing their plan; while Eugénie having a car was, indeed, convenient, the fact that she had only had it a week now seemed to be emerging as something of a drawback. Franz slid down into his seat, flinching as they swerved sharply and a car horn sounded from behind them.

"Don't worry so much, Franz!" Eugénie admonished him cheerfully, raising her voice so she could be heard above the thrum of the engine "we'll be there soon!"

The young lady seated beside Franz in the driver's seat was not one of those fixated on staying indoors out of the sun. Indeed, her only concession to the weather was a wide-brimmed hat - currently placed on the back seat for fear of it being blown away. Before too long, buildings more familiar to Franz started to fly by as they headed out of the center of Paris - evidently they had nearly arrived.

"And, here we are!" Eugénie announced, the car screeching to a halt outside a large mansion, a wide flight of stone steps leading up to the entrance. Franz couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, and glanced up to Albert's window as he stepped out of the vehicle.

"Do you know, " he said with a wry smile, looking over to where Eugénie was adjusting her blue-flowered hat, "I do believe we may have caught Albert still asleep!" He pointed up, to where the curtains were still tightly drawn. Eugénie laughed, and Franz grinned. "Shall we go in, then?" She nodded, and together they went forward.

It was a young maid named Peppo who let them in, and who also unabashedly told them that they should go up to Albert's room and 'wake up that lazy layabout', before giggling and disappearing off somewhere. As it happened, Franz and Eugénie agreed entirely with her suggestion. Having both been to the Morcerfs' mansion countless times before, the two friends had no trouble in finding their way around.

The door to Albert's bedroom was tightly shut. Franz and Eugénie looked at each other for a moment, before nodding and pushing open the heavy wooden door. The large room was filled with a muted light due to the filtering effect of the thick curtains; the double bed which lay on the far side was swathed in shadows.

Eugénie shook her head and pointed at the lump on the bed which was surrounded by rumpled duvet. "Franz, you go and drag him out of bed. I'll fetch him some clothes fit for a birthday kidnapping!" With that, she turned and headed for Albert's sizeable wardrobe which was positioned near the back of the room. Still, Albert managed to sleep on. Franz approached the side of the bed and sat down gently on the edge, for a moment just watching his friend sleep. He was buried beneath crimson covers, and Franz wondered how on earth he could stand it in this heat; even indoors in the shade it was unpleasantly warm. Albert's eyes were shut peacefully, and Franz smiled softly; moments like this did not come often.

But then the sound of Eugénie clattering about in the wardrobe brought him out of his short reverie - and so he sighed, grinned, and poked Albert in the cheek. "Hey."

For a moment, Franz thought that Albert was somehow going to manage to remain asleep, but then his blue eyes fluttered open dazedly. "Wha...?" His eyes widened, "Franz!" Suddenly sitting bolt upright, Albert gazed at him in sleepy confusion. "What...?"

Franz laughed, eyes happy as he looked at his dazed friend, "happy birthday, Albert." With that, a look of realisation dawned on the other's face, and Albert grinned cheerfully.

"So it is!" he peered past Franz so he could see over to where the noise was coming from, "and Eugénie, too? Not that it isn't lovely to see you both, but did you have to come and wake me up so early in the morning?" Albert yawned and flopped back onto the bed. Franz raised an eyebrow, and Eugénie made her way back over towards them, arms full.

"Albert," Eugénie began, and went to sit next to him on the other side of the bed; Franz felt a funny twist in his stomach when he saw the way Albert blushed as she did this, "you do realise that it's actually ten o'clock? And that, since Franz and myself consider this an important day, we might have things to do?" Albert had the grace to look slightly sheepish, but also curious, and so Eugénie stood up, dropping the pile of clothes on his face. "So!", she said happily, "get dressed quickly - I'll be waiting outside." And with that, she ignored the muffled sound coming out from underneath the duvet, and left the room.

"Mnrgh," said Albert from underneath the clothes, sitting up once more so they fell off him into his lap, "I suppose I'd better, before the two of you get violent!" He leaped out of bed and grinned, giving Franz a mock salute. Franz laughed and returned it.

"Well, you'd certainly better prepare yourself, Albert... since today, our chauffeur is Eugénie." Albert stopped what he was doing and looked up at him.

"What? Are you joking?" He was poised with his shirt half-off, and Franz had a feeling his cheeks were turning a little pink, and so turned away.

"Nope. You'll see! It will be... an interesting ride, at least." The other boy seemed to consider this for a moment, and then resumed dressing.

Albert stretched and ran a hand through his hair. "Right! I'm done." He started to head for the door, but stopped and turned around in surprise when he heard Franz cough pointedly behind him. "...What?"

Franz walked over to the tall window and tugged open the embroidered curtains. Thick beams of sunlight streamed into the room, and tough it may have been his imagination, Franz could have sworn that the temperature in the room rose by a couple of degrees. "Now, I know it's hideously hot, but..." he held something up, and then threw it at Albert, "... you'll need that cravat where we're going."

Franz knew his friend's curiosity was piqued: "Where _are_ we going?" came the inevitable question. Franz just smiled, and walked past him to the door, outside of which Eugénie was waiting.

"I suppose you'll have to wait and see!"

--------------------

"...agh!"

Franz felt slightly relieved to know that he was not the only one who was discomfited by Eugénie's unique style of driving; while he now felt slightly safer (having moved to the back seat while Albert occupied the front) the experience still left much to be desired. The sun was still beating down relentlessly, and even though they were in a fast moving open-top vehicle, the wind was still hot and the atmosphere utterly stifling.

"The Champs Elysées?" Albert asked questioningly, taking advantage of the fact that Eugénie had actually been forced to slow down for a while, even if it was just because the street was too busy. This particular street being, perhaps, one of the few that would remain bustling even in weather such as this; the pedestrians were a moving sea of parasols and hats.

"Not guessed where we're going then yet, Albert?" Franz asked cheerfully from the backseat, attempting to waft some semblance of cool air into his face with an old fan of Eugénie's he had found on the floor in front of his seat.

"Well, clearly somewhere that's _not_ the Arc de Triomphe, since we're most definitely moving away from that," he said wryly, pushing his hair out of his face, "... is it somewhere cool?"

Eugénie laughed, speeding up slightly as the traffic thinned. "Most definitely." Albert sighed and flopped bonelessly back against his seat, shutting his eyes against the glare of the sun. Consequently, he failed to notice when they turned into the Rue de Rivoli; commonly regarded as a highly fashionable place to shop, and one that Eugénie had frequented with Albert's mother on several occasions. The ornate facades of the shop-fronts seemed to stretch on for miles. But, that was not their destination today.

"We'll park here," Eugénie announced, swerving over and up onto the pavement, narrowly missing an elderly gentleman going by on a horse.

Franz felt all his muscles relax slightly once the car had come to a halt; they had all made it there without incident, at least. He fanned himself with renewed vigor, and watched as Albert cracked open an eye.

"...are we here now?" He leaned forward and peered around, his expression slightly pained, "...we're not going _shopping_, are we?" Eugénie sighed, looking a little wistful, and shook her head.

"Unfortunately, not today. Try the other side of the street, Albert." He tugged at his neck uncomfortably, trying to pull aside his collar to let some air in - but, predictably, it made no difference.

"Ah, the Tuileries!" Albert had a small smile on his face now, and slowly stepped out of the car; any unnecessary exertion seemed like an invitation for heat exhaustion.

Franz and Eugénie joined him, and together the three friends headed for the nearest gate. The twisted iron gateway was pulled open, and tall hedges either side towered over them. Gravel crunched underfoot.

"Well, we thought it would be a good place to start, despite the weather." Franz said, a faint look of nostalgia evident upon his features, "it's been a long time since the three of us last came here to play together." Albert nodded, and the quiet happiness Franz saw on his face gave him a warm feeling inside that had nothing to do with the sun overhead, which had now reached its zenith. The long narrow garden seemed almost like an oasis; all of the plants and grass had managed to retain a healthy, well-watered look thanks to a complex irrigation system. There were bursts of luscious colour all around them; the red roses in particular seemed to please Albert the most, Franz noted.

"It's a shame the statues are in such bad repair," Franz remarked, gazing sadly upon something which, these days, barely resembled anything apart from a slightly misshapen pillar. Very few of the statues bore even a passing likeness to the elegant beauty they had portrayed so long ago.

The gardens were nearly deserted; Eugénie seemed to delight in this fact and ran ahead, twirling around every so often to look back at them and gesture for them to follow more quickly; her smile and enthusiasm were infectious, so they sped up their pace a little. Franz kept noticing how Albert was watching her; eyes fixed on the girlish figure ahead, lips curved into a smile he probably thought nobody could read. But Franz could.

"...and so!" Franz announced brightly, taking Albert's arm and dragging him forward a little, "our destination comes into view." Eugénie ran back to join them, her face flushed and damp; taking Albert's other arm, she gestured ahead.

"You see through that mini archway up there? It only means one thing. The Louvre is at hand!" Franz illustrated this announcement with a little flourish, smirking at Albert's expression of wide-eyed surprise.

"The Louvre? But--" Eugénie held up a hand, and joined Franz in looking slightly smug.

"Now, now, Albert... you don't have to look so shocked. You seem to forget that we all of us are well-connected - and for once, Franz and I decided that we should take advantage of that fact." She glanced to her accomplice, and they nodded.

"Indeed, " Franz added, as they passed by a long, deep pond filled with sparkling water, and he slipped a hand into his pocket and drew out a letter, "it's a special occasion, don't you think? And this letter here --" at his point, he fluttered the paper in Albert's face before pocketing it again, "-- will be all we need."

The young brunet aristocrat still had a look of incredulity - but, of course, this soon passed and he delighted Franz and Eugénie with his sunny smile. At that moment, Franz thought that there could not possibly be a better feeling in the world than seeing Albert as lit up and joyful as this. Even the ever-insistent sun and suffocating heat did nothing to lessen the trio's happiness - it took only a minute before they exchanged a glance, grinning, and then sprinted forward, racing each other towards the archway, which almost could have passed as a miniature Arc de Triomphe. Clouds of dust from the pathway got kicked up in their wake, and the sun continued to beat down on the green rebellion of the Tuileries.

It was Albert who arrived at the arch first, and he was quickly joined by Franz, and then a few moments later by Eugénie. All were flushed and panting, for their reasonably formal dress was designed neither for the heat, nor for exercise. The sky above them was a deep cerulean blue, and stretched from one side of the city to the other without a single trace of a cloud; though where it met the horizon it grew slightly hazy.

Undoubtedly, what always struck Franz most profoundly about the Louvre was the combination of old and new; the traditional and elegantly beautiful stylings of the palace which surrounded the large courtyard expressed a grandeur which always took his breath away. And then, sat within this courtyard, the huge multi-faceted pyramid, which sparkled and shone with a dazzling light. What was unique about this particular piece of architecture, though, was that not a single part of the pyramid was constructed out of glass. No, each pane was part-hologram, part-screen; each piece displayed some intricate and beautiful three-dimensional design - which not only gave the pyramid a strange kind of moving texture, but also gave it the appearance of being almost alive. These images changed and flickered away periodically, each morphing into something more intriguing than the last.

Franz watched Albert stare at this spectacle, mesmerised. It was only a reasonably recent addition, but all the same he and Eugénie had been very surprised to learn from Albert's mother that her son had not been in this part of Paris in recent years. But, he had to agree, it was certainly hypnotic, no matter how many times you had seen it.

"Well," Eugénie said, breaking their brief spell of silence, "that's our entrance, then, I suppose!"

--------------------

A great deal of the Louvre's galleries were actually underground. After Franz had shown the letter to the men who were guarding the entrance, they were hurriedly offered a guide, the men bowing deeply. Of course, they had refused, content to wander, and had begun to make their way down the beautifully ornate wide marble staircase, enjoying the cool air within immensely. What they did not realise when they refused the guide, however, is that the Louvre is almost labyrinthine in both its size and complexity, and that even if one knew where to go, it would still take many days to see everything.

But, this was not a concern for Albert, Eugénie and Franz, who did not desire to explore every corner, and neither did they have any specific plans of what to see.

The area directly beneath the pyramid was almost akin to a giant reception room; fashionable armchairs and chaise longue of the finest fabric were scattered around, amongst tall vases filled with fresh flowers. There was another winding staircase leading up to a balcony which skirted the perimeter of the hall, and there were what seemed like hundreds of hallways leading off from both their own level, and the one above. Each hallway had a little plaque affixed to the wall next to it, which alerted visitors to where it led.

"So," Franz said at last, turning to face the enraptured Albert, "...what do you want to see?" He smiled at Eugénie as they watched Albert's wordless gesture.

"I... don't know," Albert turned around, glancing from one doorway to the next "do you think perhaps we should just choose one and see where we end up?"

Eugénie laughed softly and nodded, and Franz couldn't help but notice how warmly he looked at her. "Then, lead the way, Monsieur de Morcerf!" And so, Albert strode out towards one of the hallways on the far side.

This, then, set the pattern for their entire stay in the Louvre. They wandered from room to room, awed by the high ceilings and gorgeous architecture; pillars, engravings, elaborate doors - even the floors were masterpieces of marble and stone. And then, of course, there was the art. Greek, Etruscan and Roman antiquities; Islamic artwork, sculptures and vases dotted everywhere. The trio hovered for quite awhile within the rooms which contained the Egyptian antiquities, entranced by the panels of hieroglyphics, the wonderfully decorated sarcophagi, and fascinated by the rows of mummified animals - cats, birds, fish; even a crocodile.

The hours flew by - and since all were beginning to feel the pangs of hunger which came from missing lunch, they agreed that they should only visit one more area. Albert and Franz, having seen a sign for it a little earlier, unanimously agreed that their final stop should be the lowest level of the Louvre - where all of the alien art resided. Eugénie, on the other hand, begged Albert to forgive her, and disappeared off in search of Monet, having agreed to meet that back in the 'reception hall' at six o'clock.

The alien art, Franz noted, by and large was not entirely different to the art of their own world. However, there were many noteworthy exceptions, and Albert appeared mesmerised by them all. Paintings of shimmering, opalescent daubs; strange twisted tubes which spiralled up to the ceiling and back again; engraved images in deep basins, brought to life by an iridescent liquid. Franz sat on a chaise longue near the doorway, just to enable himself to take it all in and digest what he was seeing. The walls and ceiling in this area were very plain, almost as though this were specifically done to highlight the unique nature of the art that was held here.

Franz watched contentedly as an overjoyed Albert seemed to study a brightly coloured image which morphed and moved, hesitantly reaching out as though to touch it, but then drawing his hand away at the last minute. "Albert!" he called, as the other boy looked up, "it's nearly time to meet Eugénie again." Albert nodded, and began to make his way back over to Franz.

--------------------

Eugénie smiled at them radiantly as they left the museum, and found themselves back in the uncomfortable heat of the late afternoon sun. "So, did you have fun?" Albert nodded his head vigorously, and looked between his two friends, forehead furrowed as he tried to find the necessary words.

"Eugénie... Franz... thank you," he said seriously, before a grin broke out, and he took Eugénie with his left arm, and Franz with his right. They laughed, and together the three friends began to make their way back through the Tuileries.

"Happy birthday, Albert."

--------------------

Strangely enough, Eugénie actually drove a lot more sedately on their way back to the Morcerf's mansion. "You know," she commented (and Franz thought the she smiled a little dreamily), "I met the most wonderful girl by the Monet paintings. Right underneath _La Promenade_."

"Really?" Albert said curiously, "but it seemed so deserted! Who was she?" Eugénie gave a little half shrug.

"I don't really know. She was called Louise; we have so much in common - she plays the piano too, you know - it was quite strange!"

Franz resumed his fanning, watching Albert, who seemed to be gazing at Eugénie. The young driver, however, seemed to have her mind on something quite other than the road.

--------------------

As they pulled into the driveway of the Morcerf's mansion, Franz leaped up in the back seat and gazed over at a spot just in front of the house in obvious excitement. "Albert," he said slowly, smile spreading, "I think you should go and see your mother; she's just over there."

Albert, who had been close to dozing off suddenly opened his eyes, looking up in curiosity. With a gasp, he stood up and jumped over the car door, racing towards where Mercédès stood. By her side was a handsome motorcycle, and Albert looked stunned as he came to a halt in front of it. His mother smiled gently and kissed his cheek.

"Happy birthday, darling."

And as Franz and Eugénie came over to join their friend, the sun hung low in the sky and a warm orange glow surrounded those present, on this evening of August the twenty-ninth. 


End file.
